Christmas with the Bensons
by DiscordantPrincess
Summary: Olivia is sad about spending Christmas without her father, so she goes with Basil and Danielle to celebrate with his family. Will it still be a merry Christmas? Three-shot.
1. Plans for Christmas

**Hey, peeps, guess what? It's December 3rd! And you know what THAT means...CHRISTMAS IS COMING SOON! Oh boy, I LOVE Christmas! And I thought, what better way to share my love of this most joyous of times with my FanFiction friends than with a GMD two-shot!**

**That's right, this time it's a two-shot; two chapters featuring our favorite Victorian rodents. Here's the first chap, and I hope you enjoy. Like always, I don't own GMD or its characters, just my OC's. **

LONDON 1897

It was mid December. Snow was blanketing the city streets. The mice of London were preparing for Christmas, which was fast approaching. Children everywhere were writing letters to Father Christmas, indicating what gifts they wanted the jolly spirit to bring them. Yes, every child in London was thrilled beyond belief that Christmas was coming.

Well, almost every child.

Young Olivia Flaversham sighed as she peered out the window of 221 1/2 B Baker Street, her home for the past few months. The poor girl was an orphan; her mother had died of cholera when she was only a few months old and her father had been murdered by an evil nobleman the past July. This would be the first Christmas she would spend without her father, and she was depressed.

Danielle Ratigan, Olivia's foster sister, peered through the cracked door to the living room and watched the little girl sit at the window and cry. It broke her heart to see her little sister so sad, and at the same time she understood the child's pain. Her own father, the nefarious Professor Padraic Ratigan, had died by drowning in the Thames River that June, and so this would be the first Christmas she would be spending without him.

"How's she doing?" Danielle turned to see Basil Benson, London's greatest consulting detective and her fiance, standing there. Next to him were Dr. David Q. Dawson, Basil's sleuthing partner and best friend, and Mrs. Deirdre Judson, their landlady and housekeeper.

"Miserably," Danielle answered. "She's been crying on and off for the past hour."

"The poor girl," Dawson commented. "I think one of us should go talk to her."

"Excellent idea, Doctor," Mrs. Judson agreed.

Danielle nodded. "I'll go talk to her." She went into the living room, walked over to Olivia and sat next to her. "Hey, Livy, have you written your letter to Father Christmas yet?"

Olivia shook her head. "I'm not writing a letter to Father Christmas this year. He can't give me what I really want for Christmas." She sniffled, tears filling up her eyes. "All I want is my daddy back!" She began to weep, covering her face with her hands.

Danielle embraced the girl and gently rubbed her back as she sobbed into her chest. "I know exactly how you feel, sweetie. Remember, this is MY first Christmas without my father, too."

"Yes, I know," Olivia replied, nodding. "So why aren't YOU all sad?"

"I AM sad, Olivia," Danielle assured her. "I miss my father terribly, and Christmas won't be the same without him. But I know I'm not going to be alone this holiday, just like you're not going to be alone. You have me, and Basil, and Dr. Dawson and Mrs. Judson, and we all love you and want you to be happy." She paused. "You know, Basil and I are going to Northampton for Christmas to be with his family. Why don't you come with us?"

Olivia peered up at her sister. "You mean it? I can come with you?"

"Of course. I'm sure Basil won't mind," Danielle replied, straightening out the small red bow the girl had tucked behind her ear. "And besides, Basil has some nieces and nephews who are about your age. I'll bet you all could become really good friends and play together."

"That DOES sound like fun," Olivia agreed. "All right, if it's OK with Basil, then I'll go with you."

"That's my girl," Danielle cheered. "Now how about you and I have some of Mrs. Judson's Christmas cookies and tea?"

Olivia shook her head. "No thank you, I'm not really hungry." As if on cue, her stomach rumbled quietly.

Danielle chuckled. "Your tummy seems to think that you are." She picked up the giggling girl and carried her into the kitchen for a snack.

As the two sisters sat at the kitchen table, munching on cookies and sipping tea, Basil came into the kitchen. "You two beauties have the right idea," he told them, rubbing his belly. "I'm feeling a bit peckish myself." He sat down next to Danielle, who offered him a cookie. "Thank you, darling."

"Olivia, didn't you want to ask Basil something?" Danielle asked.

Olivia finished chewing the cookie she had in her mouth and swallowed. "Oh, right. Basil, would it be all right if I went to Northampton with you and Danielle this Christmas? She was telling me about it, and she said that you would be all right with me coming, too."

Basil smiled. "Of COURSE, Olivia dear. The more the merrier, as my grandmother would always say." He then leaned over to his fiancee and whispered in her ear. "You're not planning on inviting your father's old henchmen on our trip, too, are you?"

Danielle smiled and patted her fiance's shoulder. "No, darling, just Olivia."

"Oh, well in that case, that's fine."

**D'awww, poor Olivia...I just want to give her a big, big hug right about now. I couldn't imagine having to spend Christmas without my parents or my siblings, I'd be heartbroken. Good thing she has a big sister who loves her and takes really good care of her!**

**Heehee, oh Basil, you and your somewhat inconsiderate nature...why do I love you so gosh darn much? Is it your intelligence? Your flare for being overly dramatic? Your nutty sense of humor? Your somewhat handsome appearance? Or is it because I've always had a thing for British guys? I don't know!**

**Next chapter, Basil, Danielle and Olivia meet Basil's family and spend Christmas with them. How will it go? Gotta read to find out!**

**All my best, DiscordantPrincess. **


	2. Meet the Bensons

**(singing) On the fourth day of December, DiscordantPrincess gave to you...a brand new chapter of this fanfic! And no, you can't exchange it for a pair of diamond earrings, so don't even think about it!**

**OK, well, seeing as I have a lot of story left to tell of this, I've decided to make this story a three-shot, that is, three chapters. Hope you're all OK with that! **

Olivia watched out the window as the train clacked down the tracks. It was Christmas Eve, and she, Basil and Danielle were on their way to Northampton.

"Are you looking forward to our vacation, Olivia?" Danielle asked her sister.

"Yes," Olivia replied. "But I feel a little badly that Dr. Dawson and Mrs. Judson aren't coming, too."

"Don't worry about them, my dear," Basil reassured the girl. "Mrs. Judson always goes to Manchester each Christmas to visit her sister, and Dawson said that good doctors never take holidays from caring for patients."

"I suppose." Olivia was quiet. "I hope Father Christmas gets my letter on time. Usually I send it a lot earlier than I did this year."

"Oh don't worry, sweetie, I'm sure he'll get it right on time," Danielle reassured her. She shared a knowing glance with Basil, who gave her a thumbs-up.

* * *

Once the three mice arrived in Northampton, they took a cab to a lovely little house, where they were greeted by an older woman with the same color fur as Basil and hazel eyes. "There's my big, brave detective!" She wrapped Basil in a bone-crushing hug.

"Hello, Mum," Basil gasped. "All right, Mum, I can feel my ribcage puncturing my lungs."

The woman stopped hugging Basil and noticed Danielle. "Oh, and you must be Miss Ratigan. Basil's written so much about you...he said you were beautiful, he never said that you were a GODDESS." Danielle blushed.

"Danielle, dear, this is my mother Valerie," Basil introduced them.

"It's very nice to meet you, Mrs. Benson," Danielle replied, curtsying.

"Oh please, darling, we'll be family soon enough, call me Mother." Valerie saw Olivia. "And who's THIS little cutie? It's a bit early for you two to be giving me grandchildren, isn't it?"

Basil laughed. "Mum, this is Olivia Flaversham, Danielle's foster sister."

"Flaversham...wasn't that the name of the family you helped back in June, Basil dear?" Valerie inquired. "The case where you FINALLY defeated that wretched Professor Ratigan once and for all?" She turned to Danielle. "No offense, dear."

"None taken."

"The very same. Olivia lost her father recently, and she's now living with us at Baker Street." When Valerie looked concerned, Basil added "Yes, Danielle and I live together. No, we're not sharing a bed until we're married."

"Oh good. Now why don't you all come inside? Your brothers are here waiting for you, Basil." Valerie led the three mice into the house.

In the living room, Basil was knocked down by a group of children. "Uncle Basil!" they cheered, piling onto the detective.

"ACK! Oh no, I'm being swarmed by children!" Basil feigned fear. "Help me!" The children all laughed.

Danielle smiled as she watched her fiance play with his nieces and nephews. She approached a group of adults, two men and two women. The two men had the same fur color as Basil, but the oldest had hazel eyes like their mother and the youngest had Basil's green eyes. The woman with the oldest brother had white fur and red eyes, and the woman with the youngest had tan fur, brown hair and brown eyes. "Hello," she spoke up nervously.

"Oh hello, you must be Danielle," the oldest brother greeted her. "I'm Myron, Basil's older brother, and this is my wife Rebecca. And this is our little brother Christopher and his wife Nella."

"Pleased to meet all of you," Danielle told them. She indicated Olivia, who was peering from behind her shyly. "This is Olivia, my little sister. Go on, sweetie, say hello."

"H-Hello," Olivia replied nervously.

"Oh, aren't you darling?" Nella cooed, pinching Olivia's cheek.

"Just precious," Rebecca agreed.

"And over there flocking Basil are our children," Myron continued. He whistled, and the children all ran over and lined up. Basil got up off of the floor. "Now, the oldest is Brittany. She's fourteen, and she's Rebecca and mine's only. The rest are all Christopher and Nella's. Victor is eleven, and then Edward and Jacob are the twins, they're eight, and Gracie is the youngest at five." He looked at Olivia. "How old are you, dear?"

"Six, sir," Olivia answered quietly.

"Oh good, you and Gracie should get along well, then. Now why don't you go along and play?" Olivia looked up at Danielle, who nodded. She went off to play with Basil's youngest niece.

* * *

And so the evening seemed to go well. At one point, Danielle found herself gazing at a portrait of a man who looked just like Basil. "My late husband, Gregor Benson," Valerie explained. "He was murdered by a drunken thug. The boys were too young; Myron was sixteen, Basil was fourteen, and Christopher was ten. They were all devastated, but Basil took it the worst. He and his father had shared a special relationship, because they were the intellectuals of our family. That's why Basil became a detective, to make sure no other crimes were left unpunished."

"That's so sad," Danielle commented.

Valerie nodded. "Gregor's murder was also a big reason as to why Basil was so shaken up by the death of his first fiancee, Evelyn." She looked at the younger girl. "You DO know that story, don't you?"

"How could I not? Evelyn was my aunt."

"Oh, yes." Valerie was silent. "You know, my dear, you've been such a blessing in my Basil's life. Here I thought he'd never find another woman, and then he writes to me saying that he's engaged to the daughter of his most dangerous foe. I was stunned, at first, but then I was pleased beyond all belief that he had found someone. After all, a parent's first priority is their children's happiness."

Danielle smiled. "My father always used to say that."

"Did he, now?" Valerie smiled and hugged the girl. "Welcome to our family, Danielle."

The girl smiled, tears filling her eyes. "Thank you, Mother."

**Awww, that is too sweet! Danielle feels welcomed. Hopefully Olivia will feel the same.**

**Yes, I just made Basil's twin nephews named Edward and Jacob, and God how I hate myself for that. I just wanted a pair of names that went together that didn't begin with the same letter or rhyme, and so I came up with the stupid Twilight reference (kicks herself). Yeah, if it's not obvious enough, I'm not a Twilight fan...but I AM a Twilight Sparkle fan, heehee!**

**Next chapter is the last, I promise!**

**All my best, DiscordantPrincess.**


	3. Christmas Dinner

**Howdy, folks! Here's the next part of the story...it's the last chapter, I promise. **

As the adults chatted, Olivia and Gracie were playing with dolls. "These are really nice dolls, Gracie," Olivia commented.

"Thank you, my father bought them for me," Gracie replied.

"My father used to make toys," Olivia explained. "He made me a ballerina doll for my last birthday...but then it got broken."

Gracie looked at her new friend oddly. "I thought your daddy was a professor."

"No, why would you think that?"

"'Cause Uncle Basil told us that Auntie Danielle's daddy was a professor, and since you and she are sisters, you must have the same daddy."

Danielle overheard the two girls and came over. "No, no, Gracie sweetie, it's a little more complicated than that." She knelt down next to the girls. "You see, Olivia and I aren't actually SISTERS, sisters. We had different parents."

"Right," Olivia agreed. "But then my father died a little while ago, so Danielle and Basil took me in, and now we live together as a family."

"Oh." Gracie frowned, still looking a little confused. "So is that why you two don't look alike?"

"That's right," Danielle responded.

Just then, there was snickering. The girls looked over to see the twins.

"Aw, poor Olivia, doesn't have a family," Edward teased.

"Poor little orphan," Jacob added. "No one loves you."

"That's not true!" Olivia shot back. "Danielle loves me. Right, Danielle?"

"That's right, I do."

"She doesn't count," Edward replied. "She's not related to you."

"Yeah, poor little orphan Olivia," Jacob snickered. Olivia started to cry. Danielle hugged her.

"Leave her alone!" Brittany told her cousins. "You boys are such arses!"

"You're not the boss of us, Brittany," Edward replied snidely.

"No, but I am," Nella interfered. She grabbed the twins by the ears and dragged them away.

"Are you all right, Livy?" Brittany asked the younger girl, now sobbing into Danielle's chest.

"They're right," Olivia wept. "I don't have a family. I'm just a stupid orphan."

"That's not true, Livy," Danielle told her. "You're not a stupid orphan. And you have a family. You have me, and Basil..."

"...and now you have us," Brittany added. She looked over at her youngest cousin. "Right, Gracie?"

Gracie nodded. "Right." The two girls hugged her.

Olivia smiled. "Thank you. It feels good to be in a family."

* * *

Later on, the family gathered for dinner. Olivia sat with the children, between Gracie and Jacob, who was now rubbing his bottom from the spanking Nella had given him. His brother was doing the same.

"Before we eat, let's pray," Valerie spoke up. The others nodded and bowed their heads as Valerie said the blessing. "Dear Lord, we thank You for bringing us all together for this most blessed of times. We especially thank You for bringing Danielle and Olivia into our family, and we pray that You bless us on this joyous day as we celebrate Your birthday. Amen."

"Amen," the rest of the family replied. They then began to eat.

"So, Danielle, Sherry tells us that you..." Christopher began. Basil spit out his wine in embarrassment.

"Who's Sherry?" Danielle asked.

"Me," Basil admitted, blushing a bit. "It's a stupid nickname that Christopher calls me because my middle name is Sherringford."

"Sherringford was my maiden name," Valerie explained to Danielle. "We thought that it would make a good middle name as well...poor Basil always thought it was torture."

"I never minded the name itself, Mum," Basil replied. "I just hate being called Sherry!"

"Oh come now, Sherry, it's a cute nickname," Christopher laughed.

"For a FEMALE, perhaps," Basil mumbled.

Danielle smiled and gave her fiance a peck on the cheek. "I think Sherry is a wonderful nickname...and it's just as handsome as you are."

"Awww," the girls at the children's table cooed.

"Bleeech!" the boys retched.

* * *

That night, Danielle was tucking Olivia into bed in their room. "Are you feeling better now, Livy?"

"Oh, yes, much better," Olivia replied, rubbing her full tummy. She frowned. "Do you think Basil's family really likes me?"

"Of course they do, sweetie. They love you," Danielle assured her. "Those two boys were just trying to get a rise out of you."

"I know. And I know I'm a part of the best family ever." Olivia smiled up at her sister. "I love you, Danielle."

"I love you, too, Olivia." Danielle gave her sister a kiss on the cheek. "Now get some sleep. The sooner you get to sleep, the sooner Father Christmas will come." Olivia nodded and shut her eyes.

* * *

The next day, Olivia woke up early and jumped on Danielle's bed. "Dani, wake up! It's Christmas! It's Christmas!"

Danielle laughed as she woke up. "Well you're certainly feeling merry this morning."

"Uh-huh." Olivia then jumped back onto the floor and hopped onto Basil's bed. "Basil, wake up! It's Christmas! It's Christmas!"

Basil groaned. "Yes, yes, I'm up." He sat up. "Dear God, what time IS it?" He looked over at the clock. "Six a.m.?" He lay back down. "Wake me up in two hours."

"Oh come on, _Sherry_, it's Christmas," Danielle teased her fiance. That earned her a pillow in the face. "Hey!"

The whole family gathered in the living room a few minutes later. The children were all thrilled...the adults were all exhausted. As soon as the kids were up, they started tearing through the presents. Once the kids were done, the adults began with their gifts.

"If it's all right, everyone, I'd like to start off with my gift to Danielle," Basil announced. The adults all nodded. He took out a small box decorated with a red bow. Danielle opened it and gasped.

In the box was a sapphire and silver brooch. "Oh, Basil, it's BEAUTIFUL! Where did you get it?"

"This was my grandmother's brooch," Basil explained. "I asked Mum if it would be all right if I gave it to you, and she said it would be wonderful."

"Ooh! Put it on, Auntie Danielle, put it on!" Brittany urged. Danielle pinned the brooch to her nightgown.

"Oh, Danielle darling, it looks STUNNING on you!" Valerie told her. "The sapphire matches your eyes perfectly!"

Danielle smiled and embraced Basil. "Oh, thank you, darling, I love it!" She smiled. "Thank you all so much. I admit that I was a little worried coming here. I was afraid you might not accept me, seeing as my father and Basil had a bit of a rocky past...not to mention that this is the first Christmas without my father, so I was a bit sad."

"Me, too," Olivia added. "But you have all made us feel so accepted. It's wonderful. Thank you."

"You're quite welcome, girls," Valerie replied. "We're so glad you two are a part of our family."

Danielle smiled as she rested her head on Basil's shoulder. It was truly a merry Christmas.

**Aww, familial acceptance FTW!**

**OK, admittingly this chapter is kinda mushy...but then again, what Christmas story ISN'T a little mushy?**

**Just so you guys know (in case it wasn't obvious enough), Basil's middle name being Sherringford is based on the popular fan theory that Basil is actually his last name and that his first name is Sherringford...I don't know where that came from, but here y'all go. **

**Hope you enjoyed this little three-shot, and have a happy holiday season!**

**All my best, DiscordantPrincess. **


End file.
